1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a wireless communication device and a method for controlling the same, and in particular to a wireless communication device and a method for controlling the same in order to potentially utilize a peripheral device.
2. Description of the Related Art
A large number of wireless communication devices are available for consumers, for example, mobile telephones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), digital cameras, keyboards, computer mice, security devices and the like. Even car keys and household appliances may be equipped with wireless communication devices able to communicate with other devices. In each of these devices, there is a requirement to set up communication channels to transfer data between such devices and peripheral devices, e.g. printers, backup devices, data sources and data targets.
For example, a mobile telephone receives incoming text messages via the Short Message Service (SMS) of Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM). The user may wish to print such messages to keep a permanent record.
Data held on wireless communication devices may be in forms other than SMS messages, for example, calendar entries, emails, data files or streams of communication data. SMS messages, calendar entries and emails may require a printing device to provide hard copies of the data, whereas it may also be a requirement to initiate a backup of data in which case disk drives and associated backup devices will be required as the peripheral device. Also, it may merely be a requirement that the device can communicate with a separate peripheral device, for example car keys and household appliances to communicate with a car's security system and timing devices, respectively.
Any data transfer between a wireless communication device and a peripheral device will involve establishing a communications link between the two devices, as discussed in PCT application WO 01/50713. Communication links using Bluetooth or Infrared, such as those created by IRDA (Infrared Data Association), are used to link mobile phones to printers. This allows a text message to be printed on a printer within the range of the mobile phone.
Many wireless systems today allow users to use local wireless networks to share peripheral devices connected to the network, for example using Bluetooth technology.
Due to the flexibility of local wireless networks and the fluidity of devices entering and leaving the network, routes can become unstable. Due to this fluidity, it is a requirement that systems must determined what devices are attached to the network, and determine what the route is through the network to these devices, at periodic intervals.
One known method of locating peripheral devices on a local wireless network is to constantly search for the peripheral device. However, this is disadvantageous due to the use of a great deal of battery power within the wireless communication device, since constant IR or radio broadcasts and receptions are required, and hence would not be acceptable for a mobile phone where battery life is at a premium.
Another method is to locate a peripheral device required by the user of the wireless communication device at the time the operation involving that device (i.e. printing) is instructed by the user. However, to run through all the steps of detecting an available peripheral device before being able to utilize that device can take a long time. For example, it may take several minutes to initiate communications, or to receive a message informing the user that the required peripheral device is not available. The precise time taken depends on the complexity of the network. The user would thus have a wait for an undeterminable amount of time, at the end of which he may be told that the operation cannot be performed because the required device is not connected to any network within range.
The present invention therefore intends to overcome or at least alleviate some or all of the aforementioned problems.